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One hard-charging, LSD tripping, globe trotting Colonel!


ssggates
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This one has made for some fun research. Alexander Graham began life on a military post 9 January 1909 in newly constructed Camp Dodge, Iowa, born to Colonel and Mrs. William A. Graham. Colonel William Graham was a regular army officer who had seen service on the Mexican border and in France during WWI and is the author of several books on the Battle of Little Bighorn. They were stationed in the Philippines when Alexander left in 1928 to accept his appointment to West Point. He graduated and was commissioned a 2nd Lieutenant of artillery in June 1932. His first assignment was to Ft. Myers, where he met and married Frances Lyon Devers, daughter of General Jacob L. Devers. When the war began he was a Captain, but was quickly promoted and was a Lt. Colonel when he took command of the 94th Armored Field Artillery Battalion, 4th Armored Division. He participated in all of the 4th’s campaigns across France, Germany, and Czechoslovakia. His Silver Star was earned on 1 September 1944 near Commercy, France. The GO does not include a citation, but the action is described in Don Fox’s book Patton’s Vanguard:

 

“…the 94th AFAB… was hit by a group of twelve ME-109 aircraft, followed by a heavy concentration of counter-battery fire from German artillery. One of the M7s caught fire, and the crew scattered. Some of the men were wounded, and one man… was killed. As the ammunition on board the stricken M7 began to explode, Colonel Graham raced to the self-propelled howitzer, mounted the vehicle, and attacked the flames with a fire extinguisher. Motivated by his leadership, other men raced to help, and the gun was saved.”

 

Shortly afterward, on 9 September 1944, Graham was promoted to Commanding Officer, Division Artillery. He pinned on his Colonel rank 5 January 1945. A short while later he received a severe shell fragment wound to his left wrist and was not able to return to full duty before war’s end. His Legion of Merit was awarded in November 1945. He reverted back to Lt. Colonel in 1947 but was again promoted to Colonel in 1950. He went on to postwar assignments including Ft Bragg, Ft Knox, service with FECOM in Japan and Korea, the Pentagon, and the Army War College at Carlisle Barracks. He was placed on the disability list in 1962 for a heart condition and was retired in 1967. In retirement he devoted much of his time to veteran’s organizations, including the 4th Armored Division Association, of which he was president, the Military Order of the World Wars, the Military Order of the Caraboa, and the VFW. Colonel Graham passed away on 27 November 1977, a day after attending the Army-Navy game (at least he went out on a win!). He is buried at Arlington not far from his father and father-in-law.

 

One of the most bizarre pieces of research I have ever come across came from what’s left of his NPRC file. In 1959 he agreed to participate in an experiment with three other Colonels at Carlisle Barracks in which they would each voluntarily take LSD in order to “better recognize the symptoms in the men” (riiight…). Graham’s six-page report on the affair is comical to say the least…

 

The coat itself saw a lot of use, from Lieutenant to Colonel, based on the different markings inside (not surprising since he never got above 155 lbs in his career). It is pre-war and of very heavy and thick construction. There was a ticket dated May 1946 in the pocket and the evidence (insignia, ghosts, etc) points to the uniform being retired not long after that. This is the time period the ribbons reflect. They were painstakingly restored by yours truly. Thanks for reading!

 

 

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Captainofthe7th

Nice one, Jason. That's a gorgeous uniform. He has a great history...nice job on the research. The LSD connection is really unique and a fascinating part of culture and those sorts of experiments during that era.

 

Rob

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carbinephalen

One helluva uniform and one helluva write up! That man led by example and is an inspiration for those hoping to become an officer in the future. ? He would be damn proud of the work you put in to restoring it. Some of those WB's are hard to come by and the others are simply non-existent!

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Thank you all for the comments! Tom, I attached a photo of the awards listed in his file. The foreign awards are as follows:

 

Legion d'Honneur Chevalier (France)

Order of Leopold Officer Class w/Palm and Swords (Belgium)

Croix de Guerre w/Palm (France)

Croix de Guerre w/Palm (Belgium)

War Cross (Czechoslovakia)

 

As far as the LSD report, I think I'll just upload some photos of it. I would have loved to have been a fly on the wall for that experience...

 

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As I said I think I will post this MOR for posterity. Not sure there are too many like it that exist in official personnel files. Probably a good thing too!

 

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carbinephalen

" It needs to be tried out by many more line officers..."

 

Haha I BET it does! What an interesting and obscure piece of military history. It seems like the basis for a Stanley Kubrick film ?

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  • 2 years later...

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